WATCH | Vula Fund beneficiaries demand answers after two years of waiting

Street vendors and small business owners, who say they were promised funding through the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government’s Vula Fund in 2024, are demanding answers after waiting nearly two years for their money.

Frustrated beneficiaries from across the province picketed outside the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (Edtea) offices in Jabu Ndlovu Street, Pietermaritzburg, on Monday, accusing the department of failing to honour funding agreements.

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They said they had signed contracts confirming grants of between R40 000 and R60 000 but had yet to receive the money, despite repeated attempts to establish the reasons for the delays.

Picket leader Nkosinathi Sithole told The Witness that the uncertainty had left struggling business owners unable to access financial assistance intended to support their enterprises.

“We have been trying to get answers from Edtea, but we are failing because the department does not address us on what is stopping it from providing the funding that it signed for in our contracts,” Sithole said.

He showed The Witness a contract indicating that he had been awarded R40 000 in 2024.

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Sithole said other beneficiaries had signed agreements for R40 000 and R60 000, but were also still waiting for payment.

Mamo Ngcobo, from Lamontville in Durban, said beneficiaries had been hurried through the contract-signing process and been led to believe that funding would follow shortly afterwards.

We were rushed to sign the contracts, and the impression was that we would receive the funding soon.

“But, to date, nothing has been done,” she said.

Another beneficiary, Nombuso Msane, also from Durban, said the delays were particularly frustrating given the difficult economic conditions facing small businesses.

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She said beneficiaries had pinned their hopes on the programme to sustain and grow their businesses, only to be left waiting without any certainty about when the funding would materialise.

Edtea spokesperson Snenhlanhla Mthembu confirmed that a meeting with Vula Fund beneficiaries had been arranged for tomorrow at the Department of Public Works offices in Pietermaritzburg.

However, Mthembu did not explain the reasons for the delays or indicate when the outstanding funding would be paid.

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Sithole said beneficiaries hoped the meeting would finally provide clarity on why their payments had been delayed and when the department intended to honour the commitments reflected in their contracts.